With summer officially ending, our campers head back to school for academic enrichment. While this seems like it would be drastically different than the playing, swimming, and cheering at ISTC, there are many similarities between camp and school beneath the surface. Namely, the organized structure, social environment, and opportunity to play not only mirror life at school, but experiencing these things at ISTC will help campers succeed in school, too.
Structure:
ISTC’s daily schedule is filled to the brim with structured sports sessions, free recreation times, and set mealtimes. Our campers are constantly on the move, as they rotate between the waterfront, ropes course, mountain bike trails, and fields for the various sports we offer. Since each session is different each day, we challenge our campers to focus on the activity set forth by their All Sports coaches. Listening to instructions, using the information to play games, and then resetting for the next activity is ingrained into the camp schedule. The ability to retain different types of information is refined through camp and even more valuable in school, as kids move through several subjects each day.
Social Environment:
There is no better place to connect with all different types of people than ISTC! Camp presents an opportunity to not only live with kids of the appropriate age, but also, gives campers the chance to get to know staff from around the world. We break down social barriers through sports and cabin-of-the-week competitions, with the end goal of helping kids develop interpersonal skills. This sense of comfort in a group setting can lead to small changes in school. Campers may be more likely to participate in class, become more productive members of a group project, or even better, they’ll become a leader in the lunchroom for kids that are shy.
Opportunities to Play:
ISTC is all play, everyday! We mix team based sports like soccer and basketball with adventure activities like jet skiing and rock climbing. Our program specializes in variety not only because it keeps things fast paced for our campers, but also to help them discover new interests to take back into life outside of camp. School is as much about the extracurriculars as it is about the academics. Our hope is that campers take their favorite activities from the summertime and make it something tangible in a school setting. Joining the club rugby team since they played it in a sports session or getting involved in school spirit night with the cheers learned at camp are just a few examples. Both camp and school are opportunities for fun, and we hope the fun at camp unlocks even more fun at school.
